Shrikanth Sriram writes Life of Pi song

Plus Rahul Roy bemoans quality of remakes, Bollywood mourns Bal Thackeray, Bejoy Nambiar's new film to be released in February and Ashwani Dhir starts writing comedy.

Suraj Sharma plays Pi Patel in Life of Pi. The independent musician Shrikanth Sriram has composed a song for the film. 20th Century Fox / 20th Century Fox

The popular independent musician Shrikanth Sriram has composed a promotional song for Ang Lee's adaptation of the Yann Martel novel Life of Pi. Titled Manzil, it is composed in Hindi. "There's a vague metaphorical parallel between the song and the journey of life. We never wanted to draw a parallel, but as we composed, it just happened," Shrikanth said. After being approached by Fox Star Studios and Sony Pictures, Shrikanth composed the tune in London. The song will be broadcast next week. Shrikanth has also composed the background score for films such as Barah Aana and Striker. - IANS

Rahul Roy bemoans quality of remakes

The actor Rahul Roy, whose 1990 hit Aashiqui is about to be remade, feels that such efforts are not as good as the original. "Personally, I don't think it's the exact story... if you look at any remake, Hollywood or Bollywood, whenever you have tried to remake it, ask yourself has it been as good as the original," said Roy. The new Aashiqui is being made by Vishesh Films, the production company owned by the brothers Mahesh and Mukesh Bhatt. It will be directed by Mohit Suri and will star Aditya Roy Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor. - IANS

Bollywood mourns death of 'tiger' in Thackeray

Among messages from Bollywood celebrities following the Hindu nationalist politician Bal Thackeray's death on Saturday were condolences from veterans such as Amitabh Bachchan and Lata Mangeshkar, describing him as a man of grit and purity. "I sat by his bedside for hours these past few days, a prayer in my heart, watching him struggling to breathe, but fighting," said Bachchan. Several other names from the Hindi film industry, including Ram Gopal Varma, Hema Malini, Karan Johar and Vivek Oberoi, took to Twitter, with many calling the founder of the Shiv Sena party a "tiger". - IANS

Nambiar's new film to be released in February

The filmmaker Bejoy Nambiar's second film, the gangster comedy David, will hit the screens next year. "We are looking at releasing the film in February 2013," Nambiar said. Simultaneously shot in Hindi and Telugu in Mumbai and Mangalore, the film's cast includes Neil Nitin Mukesh, Vinay Virmani, Monica Dogra, Isha Sharvani and Vikram. Nambiar has also teamed up with Ekta Kapoor to produce Kuku Mathur Ki Jhand Ho Gayi, directed by Aman Sachdev. The youth-based comedy stars the debutant actor Siddharth Gupta and Simran Kaur Mundi. - IANS

Ashwani Dhir starts writing comedy

Buoyed by the positive response to his last movie, Son of Sardaar, the writer-director Ashwani Dhir is already planning his next project. And he has announced that it will be a funny film. "I have started scripting my next film. All I can say is that the film has a good sense of humour and will be a comedy film," he revealed. "The star cast is yet to be decided. Once the script is ready, I will make an announcement," he added. Dhir previously wrote and directed 2008's One Two Three and 2010's Atithi Tum Kab Jaoge? - IANS